Harry Potter and the Alchemist's Draught
by kh27s
Summary: Harry Potter is in his 6th year at Hogwarts, he has a lot to cope with as the threat of You-Know-Who intensifies, and a Mysterious D.A.D.A teacher appears at Hogwarts, let alone the bleeding wound that his godfather's departure has inflicted on his heart.
1. MAGIC IN LITTLE WHINGING

Harry Potter and the Alchemist's Draught

CHAPTER ONE

MAGIC IN LITTLE WHINGING

It was summer again in Privet Drive. The sun was shining high in the sky and not the tiniest trace of cloud blocked the hot beams of light that showered the neat, square houses of Privet drive.

Though it was broad daylight, there seemed not to be any sign of movement in the streets except for a skinny teenage boy with untidy hair and glasses who was walking up and down the empty streets, evidently not caring that his battered baggy T-shirt was becoming wet with his own sweat.

Although the Dursleys had been avoiding annoying him directly since his return from school, Harry Potter did not like staying home with them at all.

Uncle Vernon and aunt Petunia continued to use their old policy with Harry, which depended basically on ignoring his existence, but they seemed to be trying not to get on the wrong side of him all the same. Aunt Petunia actually said nothing about the many owls that arrived at her surgically clean house almost every day, but she merely shot the birds nasty looks and hurtled to clean up the spots where they left some feathers or -occasionally- some droppings. She didn't even say anything to Harry when a tawny owl came swooping through the open window and knocked over the teapot to deliver a package to Harry who was watching the news on TV while she and uncle Vernon were having tea, but she merely gave a tiny yelp with an extreme look of revolting on her face. Harry found out later when he ripped open the package that bore The Ministry of Magic crest on it in his room upstairs that it contained a booklet titled: A guide to elementary home and personal defense which contained some instructions about basic safety measures and some basic defensive spells and how to perform them correctly which Harry considered a joke, as he himself could do those spells in his sleep. He merely watched the illustrated wizards in the booklet perform Shield Charms and Impediment Curses remembering bitterly the occasions on which he had used those spells himself.

Dudley, however, was avoiding Harry these days. After meeting Mr. Weasley, Moody, Tonks, and Lupin at King's Cross several days ago, he seemed to be terrified of what Harry's freaky friends could do to him if he upset Harry, having experienced before walking with a tail protruding from his back, and having his tongue trail several feet long in front of him.

Harry turned a corner into Magnolia Crescent, the place he didn't know these days whether he liked being in or not. He had once met his godfather, Sirius, here. He had thought then that the shaggy dog he had seen had been an ominous sign. He looked around, however, as though he was hoping to glimpse the shaggy dog once more, but he saw no sign of life in the street at all. Although everyone in the wizarding world knew now that Sirius Black was dead, Harry still refused to believe that he wasn't going to speak to his godfather again, he sometimes considered seriously going back to the Department of Mysteries at The Ministry of Magic and entering that room with the ancient archway and pulling back that black veil to find his godfather still waiting for him there.

As the summer before, this summer was almost eventless so far. The Daily Prophet didn't contain any important news about killings or disappearances, just some silly articles about people who claimed they had spotted Lord Voldemort or Bellatrix Lestrange in their backyards or marching up the streets by their houses. Harry thought that Voldemort was somehow affected by the absence of his best Death Eaters whom Harry helped landing in Azkaban, and although the wizard prison was now guarded by a large set of ferocious dragons and a bunch of the most powerful anti-break-out spells, Harry doubted that would keep Voldemort from rescuing his Death Eaters again.

Harry was walking up Magnolia road now, his face screwed up against the dazzling sunlight, he decided to inter the play park, which seemed to be alive with the voices of the playing children. He walked through the play park gates thinking dully about all the letters he was getting almost every day, most of them were from fans who expressed their admiration and approval, evidently having read the articles The Daily Prophet was now publishing that all seemed to describe Harry as a public hero. Few of the letters that arrived, however, were from his best friends at Hogwarts, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, it made him feel a bit better to know that Mr. Weasley was going to pick him up in August and take him to stay at the Burrow with the rest of the Weasleys for the rest of the summer, but he felt a bit frustrated that he had to stay at the dursleys' till that date though he knew perfectly well now the reason he should spend some time at the Dursleys' every summer. One of the letters he received, however, was from someone he least expected to receive any letters from, Luna Lovegood, Ginny weasley's weird friend, but for some reason he found himself eager to read her letter that was basically about the search she and her father had been doing to catch a Crumple-Horned Snorkack in its natural homeland, Sweden.

Harry sat on a bench, looking up at the bright sky, he felt a bit drowsy. In fact, he had never slept very well since his return from school, for shortly after he had fell asleep every night, he woke with a start having seen a nightmare featuring Sirius going through that veil. He closed his eyes, the noise of the playing children in the park sounded more distant by the moment…he was back in that room with the stone benches and the dais on which stood that ancient cracked archway, Neville Longbottom's legs were jerking uncontrollably while he tugged on his robes to pull him up the stone steps…all signs of movement had stopped in the cavernous room except for a battling couple: Sirius, his beloved godfather, and Bellatrix Lestrange…Sirius ducked the spell Bellatrix had sent his way and, laughing, he said: "Come on, you can do better than that!", but the second spell hit him square in the chest…he was falling backward through the ragged veil. Harry yelled with all his might "SIRIUS, SIRIUS!" but this time it wasn't the end. He was alone now in the cavernous room, he looked around nervously and saw nobody at all, he stepped down the stone steps, walked toward the dais at the bottom of the room, stepped onto it, and was walking straight toward the ancient archway. The whispers were becoming louder with every step he made. He was now standing in front of the ragged veil, listening hard to the whispers coming from beyond, trying to make out the voice of his godfather. The veil was rippling gently as though in soft breeze, he had made up his mind; he stretched out his hand to pull the veil back….something hit him hard on his forehead. He opened his eyes and saw that he was still on the bench in the play park, but it was now dark and deserted except for a bunch of boys who were speaking loudly a good distance from Harry, he squinted at them and saw that they seemed to be huddled around something. He looked around and saw a soccer ball on the grass near him; he realized now what was the thing that had hit him on the forehead. He grasped the ball and strode toward the group intent to give them back their ball.

As Harry got closer to the group, he heard a familiar voice say: "Ickle Mark wants his ball back, doesn't he?", Harry recognized the huge silhouette of his cousin Dudley who was standing there with his gang, evidently unaware that they were being watched by Harry. They seemed to be grouping around a small boy and, as their favorite pastime was bullying and beating up little children, Harry was concerned about the little boy so, his hand on his waistband where his wand rested, he quickened his pace toward the group that did not seem to have the slightest notice of his approaching. Harry did not actually have any intention of using his wand against them as he had already suffered the consequences of doing magic in front of muggles. In fact, the very last summer, he had had to attend a disciplinary hearing at the Ministry of Magic because of a Patronus Charm he had done in the presence of his cousin Dudley to fend off a couple of dementors that had tried to suck his and his cousin's souls. He knew, all the same, how much his big cousin was terrified at the sight of that wooden wand, so he hoped he could luckily rescue the poor guy from Dudley and his thuggish gang without having to resort to magic.

As he was about 10 feet from them he heard Piers Polkiss -A scrawny boy with a face like a rat who was Dudley's best friend- say loudly: "I'll hold him for you, Big D-" but before Harry could even open his mouth to speak, something strange happened- Dudley and his gang all screamed in horror, their screams echoed around the deserted park, and every one of them streaked in different direction. As Dudley streaked past Harry, evidently oblivious to his presence, he passed through a patch of light that was coming from a lamp nearby and was illuminated so that Harry could see clearly why he was screaming in terror. Dudley was holding one hand to his face trying vainly to conceal the large ugly pustules that covered all his face now, a scene that reminded Harry forcibly of Marietta Edgecombe, Cho Chang's friend who had once tried to report the members of D.A to Professor Umbridge and had ended up with a set of ugly pustules forming the word "SNEAK" across her face. Harry was pretty sure that he didn't use any spell, and looking around nervously to see if anyone who could have been the source of Magic was around, he saw nobody at all but the little boy who was now walking calmly and steadily toward him.

The boy was younger than Harry, and seemed to be even smaller than Harry had been at his age. When he stepped into the patch of light that had illuminated Dudley's ugly pustules, the light fell upon him revealing smooth dirty-blond hair that, unlike Harry's, seemed to be very tidy, and emerald-green eyes just like Harry's own.

"Harry Potter," said the little boy earnestly, stretching out a hand toward Harry, "Mark Evans, pleased to meet you,"

The name seemed to stir something inside Harry, he suddenly remembered hearing his cousin Dudley and his gang boasting about beating up that new boy, Mark Evans, who had started showing up at the park last summer. He stretched out his hand and shook hands awkwardly with Mark without saying a word. Harry didn't have many friends outside Hogwarts as his uncle and aunt had told everyone in the neighborhood that he attended St. Brutus's Secure Center for Incurably Criminal Boys in order to explain his absence every year to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in fact, he didn't have any friends at all, and more than that, nobody seemed to wish to be friends with him. "Perhaps he doesn't know exactly who I am," Harry told himself, "but then how is it he knows my name?" Harry didn't want to go back home, as he knew the Dursleys would be now panicking and wailing about what had happened to their beloved son who, apparently, had a knack of getting himself bewitched, and Harry doubted that their ignoring policy with him would continue if he showed up now, as they considered him to be the only source of anything unusual in the world.

"Excuse me but, do I know you?" said Harry tentatively observing the little boy closely. He felt that his face was strangely familiar. Mark looked a bit frustrated and looked down at his feet.

"Well, I must say I was expecting something like this, after all, my dear aunt doesn't like to talk about us very much," Said mark sadly, now looking straight into Harry's eyes.

"I don't-" Harry began, but Mark continued to speak before harry could finish his sentence.

"I'm your cousin, Harry," he finished gloomily.

Harry's stomach gave a horrible jolt, his heart was racing, could this be true? Could he really have another cousin apart from his huge dim-witted cousin Dudley, and he had never known about him?

"I arrived with my grandparents here in England only last summer, they thought I should spend some time here before I get my Hogwarts letter," Mark continued, still observing Harry.

Something suddenly seemed to dawn on Harry.

"You're a…." he began.

"I'm a wizard, yes Harry, I got my Hogwarts letter this morning, pitty my dear cousin Big D does not know that," said Mark with a grin on his face.

"But then you was the one who did Magic! You shouldn't have done that, I mean, not that Dudley and his gang don't deserve what they've got but I expect the Ministry of Magic'll be sending you a warning soon-"

"Not if it was accidental," said Mark, his grin widening, "you see I usually try to control my anger, but sometimes accidents do happen,"

Harry remembered vividly how he had once made his horrible aunt Marge swell like a balloon and hover in the air above his horrified Uncle and aunt before the Ministry of Magic had dispatched a number of trained wizards to deflate her. He suppressed a smile, and looked back at Mark.

"So, are you going to tell me about your parents?" Harry asked.

"They're dead," said Mark simply.

Harry felt a horrible surge of exasperation flow in his veins, he had thought for a glorious minute that he had found himself other relatives than the horrible Dursleys, relatives that did not consider the word "magic" to be a swearword, but now his dreams seemed to have shattered.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"It's all right, they died on duty when I was a baby, I don't remember either of them, I only have photos of them," said Mark shrugging.

"What did they do, anyway?" said Harry, trying to keep the conversation going.

"They were both Aurors, it is said that my dad -that's your uncle- John Evans was one of the greatest Aurors ever, he and my mum had been sent to many countries to capture escaped Death Eaters around the world especially after you-know-who had met his downfall, but Death Eaters got them in the end, they killed them while we were in Egypt, I was one year old then."

"But then why didn't you come back home till now?" asked Harry.

"My grandfather used to work for Gringotts' branch in Egypt, but he's got a job here now.", said Mark.

A few moments passed, in which Harry and Mark stared at each other in silence, then Mark said abruptly:

"Can I have my ball back, please?"

Harry became suddenly aware that he was still clutching the soccer ball that was the reason he didn't pull back that veil and see his godfather, Sirius, beaming at him from behind it. He handed Mark the ball.

"Now you shouldn't be playing muggle games, Mark," said Harry grinning.

"Why shouldn't I? I was raised with muggles in Egypt, I think they're fascinating!" said Mark beaming back at Harry.

Harry remembered somebody else who thought muggles were fascinating. Mr. Weasley, his best friend Ron's father had always shown respect and liking to muggles. He remembered that he was to go to the burrow in August and wished time could elapse faster until that date. At least he had now a friend who knew about the wizarding world to chat with while he was at Privet Drive.

"Well, I'll have to go now Harry, I don't even live in Little Whinging-" Mark began.

"You don't live here?" said Harry goggling at him as though this was a sick joke.

"But you come to the neighborhood too often, I've always heard Dudley say-"

"Yes, I've actually come here several times last summer hoping to see you, Harry," said Mark.

"Me?" said Harry astonished.

"Yes you, Harry, I've been hearing a lot about your encounters with you-know-who since your first year at Hogwarts. Luckily today I managed to see you at last,"

Harry felt a sudden pang, he remembered the aftermath of those encounters; two people who had died because of his own stupidity: Cedric Diggory, and his godfather, Sirius Black.

"Well, I'll be seeing you then," Harry mumbled.

"Bye Harry," said Mark joyfully, and he turned around and strode away leaving Harry standing there alone in the gloominess.

Harry traipsed through the dark and deserted park and, devoid of magic, he vaulted over the locked gate and headed back to number 4, Privet Drive.

When he arrived, however, he found that the lights were all on in the house, and the monstrous silhouette of uncle Vernon loomed up in front of the front door.

"What happened, boy?" spat uncle Vernon the moment Harry was within earshot.

"Why don't you ask Dudley?" replied Harry, trying to sound casual.

Uncle Vernon swelled ominously, his face was becoming a deep shade of puce, and the familiar vein in his temple was throbbing dangerously.

"Don't play games with me boy, answer my question!" he blustered, spraying Harry with a shower of spit.

"I didn't do magic, you know I wouldn't, Otherwise I'd be expelled immediately!" Harry replied in a would-be casual voice.

Uncle Vernon looked around nervously, evidently to see if somebody was eavesdropping, then looked back at Harry with an expression of utmost disgust on his large purple face.

"I've warned you before boy-" he said in a very low whisper that Harry actually had to lean forward to hear what he was saying, "-not to mention your abnormality in my house!"

"Get in," he said grabbing Harry tight with one of his enormous hands and dragging him inside the house.

When Harry entered the living room, he found that Dudley, still looking appalled, was sitting on the couch. Aunt Petunia was sitting next to him with one of her bony hands on his shoulder. Dudley shuddered slightly at the sight of Harry and leaned closer to his mother. Harry noticed that Dudley's face was now pustule-free.

"I see nothing wrong with him," Harry gestured toward Dudley.

"Your lot have been here," snapped Uncle Vernon, glaring at Harry.

"Why do you care what happened if everything's alright now?" said Harry, still trying as hard as he could to sound casual.

"It was you boy, I know it was you!" spat uncle Vernon. "Nobody could possibly have done…you-know-what in the neighborhood except you!"

"Oh yeah? I suppose ickle Diddykins didn't tell you who he and his gang have been trying to beat up tonight, did he?" said Harry angrily abandoning the casual voice.

"What are you talking about, boy? Dudley's been out to have tea with his friend, Malcolm!" snarled uncle Vernon.

"They've been trying to beat up Mark Evans," Harry finished as though he didn't hear what uncle Vernon had just said.

The name seemed to have struck aunt Petunia and uncle Vernon dumb; aunt Petunia was gazing horror-struck at Harry as though he had just uttered a most revolting swearword, uncle Vernon looked as though something very heavy had just hit him on the head. Dudley, however, was now shaking uncontrollably, as though his parents' reactions made him feel much worse about what he had done. When he spoke again, the words came in a feeble squeak.

"Liar," he squeaked. "He's a liar,"

Aunt petunia was on her feet now, she was looking transfixed at Harry.

"You're lying, boy," she said in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

"He's…he's not in town!"

"He came back last summer with his grandparents," said Harry calmly.

More silent moments passed, in which uncle Vernon and aunt Petunia seemed to be deep in thought. Harry felt something odd going on inside him, he struggled with himself for a moment then said in a voice that rang in the gloomy silence:

"Why do you dread us that much?"

He almost immediately regretted it, for aunt Petunia was looking so livid now, and uncle Vernon's large face seemed to swell even more, it was becoming an ugly shade of puce again, and his mustache bristled, which was always a dangerous sign.

"Your lot are nutters! I shouldn't have let you go to that freaky school in first place!" snarled uncle Vernon, an insane look in his eyes.

"You couldn't have stopped me from going to that freaky school," Harry retorted.

But things were going from bad to worse, uncle Vernon's nostrils flared, his temples were throbbing wildly. He stretched out an enormous hand and grabbed the neck of Harry's baggy threadbare T-shirt.

"But I can stop you from causing more trouble in this house!" spat uncle Vernon, the insane look was now more pronounced than ever in his beady eyes.

"I don't care what your lot have told me, boy! You shall not stay another moment in my house! Out, OUT! -"

But at this precise moment, something odd happened. Uncle Vernon let go of Harry with a yelp as though he had just received an electric shock, and then, almost instantly, a barn owl came swooping through the open window with a scarlet envelope in its beak that Harry immediately recognized as a Howler. The owl dropped the Howler precisely over uncle Vernon's head, who ducked immediately as though dodging a grenade.

Harry was about to open his mouth to advise uncle Vernon to open the envelope, now lying on the floor, when aunt Petunia spoke.

"Open it, Vernon," she said in a trembling voice, eyeing the envelope fearfully.

Perhaps it was the fact that the Dursleys had suffered last summer the consequences of not opening a Howler soon enough that made uncle Vernon pick up the scarlet envelope and open it very gingerly.

The moment that he did so, Mad-eye Moody's oddly magnified voice echoed in the living room.

"DURSLEY, YOU SCUM! I THOUGHT I'VE WARNED YOU NOT TO MISTREAT HARRY! I'LL CONSIDER THIS HOWLER AS A LAST WARNING, BUT I SWEAR IF YOU EVER THINK ABOUT MAKING ANOTHER FOOLISH BEHAVIOR, YOU'LL SPEND THE REST OF YOUR DAYS REGRETTING IT!"

The envelope, having dropped from uncle Vernon's shaking large purple hands, burst into flames, and curled into ash on aunt Petunia's surgically clean floor.

There was a ringing silence in which uncle Vernon seemed to be very furious but didn't utter a single word, and aunt petunia looked paler than ever with an expression of extreme horror on her face. Dudley, however, looked as though he was going to cry. Then Harry spoke.

"Well, I'll be in my room." He said quietly, and without further ado, he turned around, strode toward the stairs and, feeling that all eyes were upon him, he started climbing upstairs toward his room; each step he took echoing in the shocked silence.


	2. AN OWL WITH OWLS RESULTS

CHAPTER TWO  
  
AN OWL WITH O.W.L.S RESULTS  
  
Harry spent most of the next day in his bedroom, he wrote letters to Ron, Hermione, and Hagrid. He was feeling an overwhelming desire to meet them, speak to them, he could not stand to spend another day with the Dursleys though he had only few days left till August, which meant going to the burrow to stay with the Weasleys, and although Ron hadn't mentioned a precise date in his letters, Harry was hoping that on the first of August, he'd find Mr. Weasley stepping out of the living room fireplace or knocking on the front door to take Harry with him away from this abominable place. Harry included a question about the precise date of his departure to the burrow in his letter to Ron.  
  
Harry hadn't yet told the Dursleys that Mr. Weasley was going to pick him up, he dreaded the reaction he might get from them, and for all he knew, Mad-eye Moody was not the kind of man who would not keep his word, especially if it concerned something he had been longing to do for ages, like turning uncle Vernon into a warthog for instance, and Harry did not want such an aggravation right now.  
  
As Harry watched his large snowy owl, Hedwig disappear from view with the three scrolls of parchment tied to her legs, he flung himself back onto his bed and lay there motionless.  
  
The scar on Harry's forehead that was shaped like a lightning bolt twinged slightly and he wondered gloomily what Lord Voldemort might be plotting at this very moment.  
  
A succession of memories seemed to roll in front of his eyes like a movie. He was eleven, fighting off a vicious professor Quirrell with Lord Voldemort's snake-like face protruding from the back of his head…he was twelve, the limp form of Ginny Weasley was lying motionless on the ground, and he was holding a gleaming silver sword, with rubies the size of eggs that embellished its handle, while a giant blind serpent was lunging wildly at him…he was thirteen, sending a silver stag out of the tip of his wand at a hundred dementors that were trying to suck out the souls of the unconscious Sirius, Hermione, and his own past form…he was fourteen, gripping tight his wand which was connected by a golden thread of light with the newly reborn Lord Voldemort's wand, and the ghostly forms of Cedric Diggory, his mother and father were standing next to him, bracing him up…he was fifteen, watching from behind a headless golden statue as Dumbledore dueled with the hooded figure of Lord Voldemort.  
  
He remembered gloomily the revolving shape of professor Trelawney that had risen from Dumbledore's Pensieve, and had told him, for the first time, the Prophecy that sentenced him either to murder or be murdered by Lord Voldemort.  
  
His wish to meet his best friend, Ron, intensified though he knew perfectly well that nothing Ron or anybody said would be able to soothe the agony he was feeling inside him. He hadn't even told Ron or anybody else about that Prophecy and he didn't know at the moment how he was going to do it, or whether he wanted to do it at all.  
  
"Dinner!" shouted aunt Petunia's voice from somewhere downstairs, and Harry emerged from the sea of memories he seemed to be drowning in. He didn't want to eat with the Dursleys as, since yesterday's events, they seemed to have decided to behave in the very same way during every meal; uncle Vernon glared silently but menacingly at Harry, aunt Petunia shot him very nasty looks every now and then, and Dudley eyed him fearfully as though he was going to turn him into a rat at any moment.  
  
Harry stayed in his room, lying on his back on the bed, and gazing through the open window into the star-strewn night sky.  
  
Something was moving in the distance, a dot was becoming larger steadily. As it got closer, the thing seemed to be a bird, and as it became feet away from Harry's window, he realized that it was an owl. It couldn't possibly be Ron's owl, Pigwidgeon, as this one seemed to be much larger. Could it possibly be from Hermione or Hagrid? Could any of them possibly have sent him a reply to his letter as quickly as this? Or is it just another letter from a fan?  
  
The owl soared through the open window and landed gracefully on Hedwig's empty cage. There was a large brown formal-looking envelope in its beak.  
  
Harry stretched a hand and clutched the envelope. The owl gave a tiny hoot, and took off again into the starry sky.  
  
Harry examined the envelope; it had both The Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts crests on it. His heart gave a leap of excitement; he knew at once what that envelope contained. He ripped open the envelope with shaky hands, and took out the neat piece of parchment that was enclosed, and which bore the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts seals on its bottom, and, his heart racing, he began scanning it feverishly.  
  
MINISTRY OF MAGIC - THE WIZARDING EXAMINATIONS AUTHORITY  
  
THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT MR. HARRY JAMES POTTER, STUDENT AT HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY, HAS ACHIEVED THE FOLLOWING DEGREES IN HIS ORDINARY WIZARDING LEVEL EXAMS:  
  
ASTRONOMY: ACCEPTABLE  
  
CARE OF MAGICAL CREATURES: OUTSTANDING  
  
CHARMS: EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS  
  
DEFENSE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS: OUTSTANDING  
  
DIVINATION: ACCEPTABLE  
  
HERBOLOGY: EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS  
  
HISTORY OF MAGIC: ACCEPTABLE  
  
POTIONS: EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS  
  
TRANSFIGURATION: EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS  
  
SIGNED:  
  
CORNELIUS FUDGE  
  
MINISTER OF MAGIC  
  
GRISELDA MARCHBANKS  
  
HEAD OF THE WIZARDING EXAMINATIONS AUTHORITY  
  
ALBUS DUMBLEDORE  
  
HEADMASTER OF HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY  
  
Harry could not believe what he had just read, he scanned the piece of parchment over and over again, and when he had finally finished, he put down the parchment on his bedside table and lay down again on his back on the bed. He had managed to scrape passes in all nine O.W.L.s, he had even passed in Divination which had been, perhaps, the most dreadful exam he had ever done, and what was more, he had actually managed to scrape an E in his Potions O.W.L when he had only dared to hope for an A in his wildest dreams. He remembered, however, that professor McGonagall had once told him that Snape took in his class only students who had managed an O in their Potions O.W.L, but that was hardly something to grieve about, as professor Snape, the Potions master at Hogwarts, happened to be Harry's least favorite teacher, and his hatred to Snape actually had intensified after the death of Harry's godfather, Sirius, as he, Harry, still considered Snape to be responsible for his godfather's death somehow.  
  
The next few days seemed to be quite eventless, apart from the daily owls from fans. Harry actually continued to stroll the streets of Little Whinging hoping to meet again his newly discovered cousin, Mark Evans, but he didn't.  
  
On July the 31st, Harry received the replies to the letters he had sent to Ron, Hermione, and Hagrid, along with his birthday presents.  
  
Ron had actually sent him a box of Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-Bangs, and Harry remembered vividly how Umbridge and Filch had once tried vainly to extinguish the outstanding fireworks that the Weasley twins had set loose in the castle. He could not help but to smile widely at that thought.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
Happy birthday.  
  
As for your question about the precise date on which dad's going to pick you up, I'm afraid I'm not allowed to tell you, dad reckons it's still too risky to write such things in letters, in case they fell into the wrong hands. But I think it's going to be soon enough.  
  
I reckon I'll be seeing you soon then, so until we meet, don't let the muggles get you down.  
  
Take care mate,  
  
Ron  
  
P.S: Fred and George insisted on presenting you with something of their own merchandise, so actually this present is from the three of us.  
  
Harry put down Ron's letter and imagined the twins sitting in their premises in Diagon Alley, grinning widely while they counted their proceeds of Galleons.  
  
Hermione, however had sent him an extraordinary birthday cake, which came in handy as he was still avoiding eating with the Dursleys too often. She had also sent him a letter in which she asked him about his O.W.L.s results, and informed him proudly that she had gotten nine Outstandings.  
  
Hagrid's gift was some homemade cake, which Harry thought he had made a very wise decision by presenting it to Ripper, the Dursleys' bulldog, who turned a shade of green immediately after taking the first bite at it, and barked madly in protest. Hagrid had also sent him a letter, which turned out to be a short article about Grawp, Hagrid's little giant brother.  
  
On the first day of August, Harry hardly stayed put, he was pacing the house, peeking into the living room, hoping to catch any sign of movement inside the boarded living room fireplace, and he strained his ears every time he passed near the front door, wishing to hear any slight sign of a knock on the door, but nothing happened. The only outcome was that uncle Vernon's face went all puce, and he glared madly at Harry every time he came near him.  
  
Harry sat on his desk in his room a few days later, writing grumpily the regular letter in which he informed the members of the Order of the Phoenix that he was alright and not being mistreated. It was late in the night and Hedwig was out hunting, so he put down his quill and waited gloomily for his snowy owl to emerge, perhaps carrying a dead mouse in her beak. He was almost as angry with Mr. Weasley as he had been with his friends, Ron and Hermione last summer.  
  
He was gazing at the twinkling stars outside the open window, he felt a bit drowsy so he took off his glasses and leaned backward in his chair. A soft breeze drifted through the open window tickling his face slightly. He closed his eyes and, almost instantly, he was back in the Death Chamber in the Department of Mysteries. It was deserted, he was standing on top of the stone stairs gazing down at the ancient archway with that tattered black veil that had haunted his dreams since the day Sirius had went through it. He hurtled down the stone steps, his heart beating faster with every step he took. He climbed the dais at the bottom of the room and headed steadily toward the veil. He was now standing inches from the tattered veil, listening hard to the whispers that were coming from beyond, and then he heard it. A voice was calling his name from beyond the veil; it was unmistakably his godfather, Sirius's hoarse voice.  
  
Harry's heart was hammering somewhere behind his Adam's apple, he felt something tap gently on his forehead. "Harry, Harry!" his godfather's voice called, and he extended his hand toward the veil, but the tapping on his forehead was becoming slightly painful. He opened his eyes and saw with a huge jolt of horror, something grey and hairy dangling half an inch from his nose. He gave an echoing yell and staggered backwards and, losing his balance, he toppled off his chair and fell to the floor, with a painful thud, on his back.  
  
Harry massaged his aching back and squinted blearily at the thing that had just attacked him and discovered that it was a dead rat dangling from his own owl, Hedwig's beak.  
  
Harry listened hard for a moment to detect if there was any sound coming from the Dursleys' bedroom, but he heard nothing except the loud snorts that uncle Vernon was issuing, which meant Harry was safe.  
  
"You couldn't come back a minute later, could you?" Harry told his owl angrily, snatching the dead rat from her beak and tying up the scroll of parchment, that was his letter to the Order, to one of her legs.  
  
Hedwig gave a tiny indignant hoot and took off again through the open window, evidently mad at Harry for depriving her of her meal.  
  
Harry blinked and picked up his glasses that were lying on his desk and put them back on, he didn't feel like going back to sleep.  
  
He leaned back on his chair and stared blankly at the ceiling. What were all those dreams about? He had been having the same dream for a while now, the dream that featured him alone in the Death Chamber at the Department of Mysteries. Could that be another trick of Lord Voldemort's? Could Voldemort possibly be trying to lure Harry again into the Ministry of Magic, like he had done successfully only a few weeks ago and Harry had been stupid enough to do exactly as Voldemort had wanted him to do, resulting in the death of the dearest person to him, his godfather, Sirius?  
  
Harry spent more eventless few days, waiting for Mr. Weasley to show up, and jumping every time the doorbell rang, expecting to find Mr. Weasley waiting for him behind the door with an apologetic grin on his face, but it didn't happen.  
  
Time elapsed and Harry had almost lost any hope that anyone was going to pick him up at all. He lay on his bed on the eighth of August, thinking about the proper way to shout at Mr. Weasley in case he ever arrived at Number 4. Privet Drive. It was 10 minutes past midnight when Harry felt himself surrender to sleep in spite of his fury. He was soon fast asleep though he thought he was hearing noises in the distance.  
  
Harry felt someone prod him gently in the ribs and, yawning widely, he slowly opened his sleepy eyes.  
  
The thing that Harry saw in front of him made his heart give a horrible jolt.  
  
Standing in front of him, silhouetted against the ray of moonlight that was coming through the open window, was a towering figure that looked so formidable in the golden moonlight. It was the silhouette of a huge man who was holding in one of his hands what looked unmistakably like a wand. Harry leapt backwards, he was fully awake now, his heart was racing, and cold sweat was oozing from every inch of his body, he fumbled frantically on his bedside table for his wand, but the wizard was faster than him. "Accio wand!" whispered the tall wizard and Harry's wand soared in the air and rested in the wizard's free hand.  
  
"It's OK Harry, it's me!" said a deep familiar voice, in a low tone.  
  
"Kingsley?" said Harry uncertainly, squinting hard in the darkness at the huge shape in front of him.  
  
"Lumos!" said the deep voice of the tall wizard and his wand tip ignited illuminating Harry's room. He held it up as though he was holding a torch, and his face swam clearly into vision, illuminated by the magical light; it was the face of the familiar bald black wizard with a single hoop in his ear, Kingsley Shacklebolt, beaming at Harry.  
  
"Sorry about this unexpected entrance, Harry, but Dumbledore's orders are clear; he does not wish to draw much attention to your departure," said Kingsly, chucking Harry's wand back to him. Harry caught his wand and stared at Kingsley, still struggling to take in what was going on.  
  
"I…I thought you were voldemort!" said Harry tentatively. He had expected Kingsley to flinch, or at least to show a sign of disapproval of mentioning the name that most of the wizarding world referred to as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but on the contrary, Kingsley gave a weak chuckle.  
  
"He wouldn't be turning up here, now, would he?" said Kingsley grinning.  
  
"Now, You'd better get packed Harry, we wouldn't want to be late," said Kingsley, shooting a brief look at the open window.  
  
Harry realized suddenly that Kingsley could not possibly have been the only one who had been sent to accompany him. He got off his bed, rushed to the open window and gazed down at the dark lawn.  
  
The street seemed to be oddly dark, even darker than it was usually at night, the only light seemed to be coming from the moon, but Harry, nevertheless, could make up the silhouette of a young woman waving at him from the lawn below, and even in the pitch-black darkness, Harry could recognize the familiar spiky hair. It was Nymphadora Tonks, the young Auror. He waved back at her and turned back to face Kingsley.  
  
"Where's Mr. Weasley?" Harry asked.  
  
"He's still on duty, but I expect He'd be back by the time we've arrived," said Kingsley.  
  
Harry did not have much to do as he had already packed his trunk, having been expecting Mr. Weasley to arrive at any moment since the first day of August.  
  
"Done!" he said to Kingsley, dragging his Trunk and Hedwig's cage toward the door.  
  
"No, Harry, we're not using the stairs-" said Kingsley, "-we're going down there!" he indicated the open window.  
  
Harry stared perplexed at the window for a moment; he was wondering what trick Kingsley was going to use to get them down on the lawn through it, surely they weren't going to jump!  
  
Kingsley made for the window and stared out of it at the starry night sky for a moment, then made a kind of funny wave with his hand, as though he was beckoning something that was high in the sky above to come to him.  
  
Harry squinted at the sky too, scanning it for the thing that Kingsley was trying to communicate with, and then he saw it.  
  
It was definitely some kind of bird, Harry thought for a fleeting moment that it was an owl, but as it came closer to his window he realized exactly what it was.  
  
Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix, soared through the open window and rested gracefully on Harry's bedside table, it's beautiful head turned to face Harry. Hedwig gave a tiny hoot in her cage expressing her disapproval.  
  
"Well, what are you waiting for Harry? Grab his tail," said Kingsley grinning.  
  
Harry clutched Fawkes's tail with one hand and Hedwig's cage with the other, while the phoenix grabbed his trunk with its golden talons. They soared down the window onto the dark lawn.  
  
"Wotcher Harry!" said Tonks cheerfully as the phoenix took off again to fetch Kingsley.  
  
"Hello Tonks," Harry said, grinning. He looked around the oddly dark streets; he had a strange feeling that he was being watched.  
  
Kingsley landed gracefully next to Harry.  
  
"Dumbledore surely has a fine taste when it comes to choosing his pets," said Tonks gleefully, observing the beautiful bird admiringly as it fluttered back upward.  
  
Harry stood there silently with Kingsley and Tonks for several moments having no clue what they were waiting for. He looked from Tonks, who was examining the neat square houses of Privet Drive with a cheerful smile on her face, to Kingsley, who seemed to be scanning the area for any sign of unusual movement.  
  
"So, are we..er..are we going there on brooms?" asked Harry tentatively, looking from Tonks to Kingsley.  
  
"Oh no Harry, I expect it'll be arriving any moment now," said Kingsley, still watching carefully around.  
  
Harry was just about to open his mouth to ask what exactly they were looking for when an earsplitting bang echoed through the sleepy silence and a pair of dazzling headlights illuminated the garden. The next moment Harry found himself being dragged forcibly by Kingsley out of the way as a triple-decker, violently purple bus screeched to a halt on the Dursleys' carefully mown lawn, causing the fence, the hedge, and the flower beds to leap aside as it came.  
  
Harry's eyes darted quickly to the house, but the lights were still off, and there was no sign of movement or noise coming from it. He sighed in relief and looked back at the bus that was standing inches from him, he had traveled by The Knight Bus a couple of times before, and he was familiar with it now.  
  
A familiar thin, pimply, young man in purple uniform jumped out and began to recite loudly:  
  
"Welcome to the Knight Buss-"  
  
"Shush!" said Tonks fiercely, "Enough with the codswallop, Stan! We don't want to wake the whole neighborhood, thank you!" she continued in a barely audible, but fierce voice.  
  
Stan didn't utter a single word; he merely shot Tonks a nasty look, and turned away. His eyes fell upon Harry and darted promptly to his forehead, with a broad smile on his face. Harry turned away from Stan and gazed blankly at the bus; though he was used now to people staring at his scar, he still didn't like being stared at just because of that stupid scar which had given him nothing but sorrow.  
  
Again he felt as though he was being watched and thought it might be Stan's none-blinking gaze that was causing this feeling.  
  
"Alright, you can show up now, the bus's already here, Mad-Eye!" said Tonks impatiently.  
  
A sound of whipping off a cloak came from in front of Harry and Mad-Eye Moody's form appeared exactly in front of him, blocking from view the spot of The Knight Bus that Harry had just been gazing at.  
  
"You didn't feel my presence at all, boy!" growled Moody, his magical eye swiveling madly in all directions, and the many lines and scars on his face casting odd shadows in the light that was coming from The Knight Bus's headlights.  
  
"You should be more careful, I'm not the only one with Invisibility Cloak, you know!" Moody added, his Magical eye resting upon Harry now.  
  
"Er..I'll try!" said Harry awkwardly.  
  
"Lets save the conversations till later, shall we?" said Tonks briskly, shoving Harry into the bus.  
  
Just like the very first time Harry had traveled by the Knight Bus, there were half a dozen brass bedsteads beside the curtained windows, and candles were burning in brackets beside each bed. Harry looked around and saw that there was nobody there at all, except for a tall, stringy, black wizard, who seemed to be fast asleep on the very last bed from the driver's seat. Stan indicated one of the beds for Harry to sit on it and shoved his trunk under it. Tonks and Kingsley had already got onboard and were now sitting on the two beds beside Harry's own so that he was sitting in between them. Harry looked out of the window to see what was keeping Moody from joining them and saw that Moody was now holding a silver instrument that looked like a cigarette lighter, and releasing balls of light out of it that flew back to the extinguished street lamps causing them to glow back with light illuminating the neat houses of Privet Drive.  
  
"Done!" growled Moody as he climbed the bus stairs and headed toward Harry, Tonks, and Kingsley.  
  
The Knight Bus rumbled around the neat streets of Little Whinging for a minute then there was a loud BANG.  
  
Harry was thrown backward onto his bed, and pulling himself up again, he stared out of the window and recognized with a leap of excitement the dark narrow streets they were now rolling through; they were in Hogsmeade, the wizard village.  
  
The bus screeched to a halt just outside The Hog's Head pub. Harry saw the familiar severed hog's head on the sign that was creaking slightly in soft breeze.  
  
Stan, the conductor, was walking toward the end of the bus, where the black wizard lay on his bed.  
  
Harry felt suddenly cold and wished the black wizard, who was now walking sleepily behind Stan toward the bus door, would get off the bus soon so that the door would be closed again restoring the heat inside the bus.  
  
But suddenly, the black wizard stopped dead in his tracks; he looked fully awake now, and he plunged his hand into his robes and Harry had a strong feeling the wizard was clutching his wand under his cloak.  
  
The cold was intensifying rapidly, and the candles flickered and went out leaving the bus swimming in total darkness. Harry was suddenly feeling that horrible familiar feeling, as though he was being drained of happiness, he felt Tonks, Kingsley, and Moody move swiftly somewhere close to him and heard Kingsley's deep voice say:  
  
"Stay put, Harry, don't follow us!"  
  
But Harry had already made up his mind; he whipped out his wand and, shivering, stepped out of the bus into the biting cold. 


	3. DEMENTOR DIVERSION

CHAPTER THREE  
  
DEMENTORS DIVERSION  
  
It was like nothing Harry had ever seen; Tonks, Moody, Kingsley, and the stringy black wizard were all standing there in the bitter cold, holding out there wands in front of them, each one of them had already lit his or her wand tip, while towering black hooded figures were sliding at them from every direction. Even when Harry had encountered dementors before, in his third year at Hogwarts, there hadn't been so many of them like there was now.  
  
"Expecto Patronum!" Harry heard everyone yell in unison, and silver figures burst out of the tips of the four wands; a silver lion burst out of Kingsley's wand, charging ferociously at a group of dementors causing them to glide away, while Tonks's silver swan chased off another group, Moody, however, had produced a silver eagle which was flapping its wings fiercely at a fleeing gang of dementors, and the stringy black wizard had set his silver cheetah on another group of dementors that slided away immediately. But every departing dementor seemed to be replaced by two fresh ones.  
  
Harry strained his brain to conjure a happy thought but his brain seemed to be jammed, all his recent memories seemed to be sorrowful ones, he concentrated hard on the Outstanding he had accomplished in his Defense Against The Dark Arts O.W.L as the gathering dementors closed in upon them.  
  
"Expecto Patronum!" he yelled with all his might but a mere wisp of silvery vapor issued out of the tip of his wand. The dementors were very close to him now; he could hear their rattling, hoarse breath. A shrill high-pitched laugh was ringing inside his head - a woman's scream was echoing somewhere in the back of his head - a cold ruthless voice said: "Bow to death, Harry …" - a familiar voice said sorrowfully: "There's nothing you can do, Harry … nothing …. He's gone …" While the horrible cold voice spoke again - "You have irked me too often, for too long. AVADA KEDAVRA!"  
  
One of the dementors extended one of its scabbed slimy rotten hands toward Harry, who had lost now any ability to concentrate, and was drowning in the freezing cold. But before it could lay its slimy hand on Harry, the silver cheetah had appeared out of nowhere and was now chasing it and some of the other surrounding dementors off.  
  
Harry felt some heat flow back in his veins, the screams in his head subsided a little bit, but he was still in a horrible state all the same. He was shaking so badly now that he felt his heart was going to stop beating at any moment, he had almost lost any hope of becoming cheerful again. But then something seemed to force its way into his brain; the image of his godfather, Sirius, swam into vision before his eyes and Harry suddenly felt that he might be able to meet Sirius again after all. He was hoping to freeze to death so that he could see Sirius, talk to him - at that very thought he felt a rush of happiness break the ice inside his heart.  
  
"Expecto Patronum!" He yelled, and the silver stag erupted out of the tip of his wand, charging at the surrounding dementors so forcibly with its antlers that a wide circle around Harry was clear of dementors in no time.  
  
The five silver animals continued to fend off dementors, but there were too many of them to fend off. Soon, dementors that were not being attacked by any of the five Patronuses closed in upon Harry and the rest of the battling group. Harry was starting to lose focus again - but just then, something odd happened.  
  
There was suddenly a loud BANG, like a gunshot, and a dazzling silver light illuminated the dark sky so forcefully that it looked for a moment as though they were in broad daylight. Next moment, the surrounding streets of Hogsmeade were dark and deserted again.  
  
Harry was feeling a bit better again, but before he could savor the victory, he felt horrible searing pain in his scar; it was like his head was going to split in two. His feet gave way, and he collapsed onto the ground.  
  
"Are you alright, Harry?" said a familiar voice from somewhere above Harry, he opened his eyes to see a pair of bright blue eyes staring fixedly through half-moon spectacles into his eyes; Dumbledore was kneeling on the ground beside Harry and staring at Him with a concerned expression on his face.  
  
"He's feeling pleased, Voldemort's pleased about something!" Harry mumbled.  
  
"I know, Harry," said Dumbledore calmly.  
  
But before Harry could say another word, a large chunk of chocolate was shoved into his mouth by Tonks.  
  
"How do you know?" asked Harry through a mouthful of chocolate.  
  
"Because that's why he has set those dementors on you, Harry," replied Dumbledore in the same calm voice.  
  
"I don't understand," said Harry perplexed.  
  
"I'm quite sure you shall understand soon enough, Harry," said Dumbledore, standing up, "but as for now, Alastor, Kingsley, and Tonks will be, kindly enough, escorting you to Arthur Weasley's place."  
  
Harry picked up his wand that was lying on the ground near him, pulled himself up and, with a little help from Tonks, climbed the steps back onto The Knight Bus. When he looked out of the window, however, Dumbledore was gone.  
  
Harry did not care too much, at the moment, what Dumbledore had meant. His scar was still searing, and he still felt a little sick. He lay flat on his bed as The Knight Bus gave another echoing BANG, causing him to slide dangerously backwards, and was now rolling through dark countryside roads.  
  
The Knight Bus screeched to a halt, and Harry heard Stan's voice call from somewhere in front:  
  
"'Ere you go, 'Arry, The Burrow!"  
  
Harry got to his feet again and hurtled toward the bus door, the pain in his head had almost subsided completely now, he stepped out of the bus to find Tonks, Kingsley, and Moody huddled around Mr. Weasley, a thin balding bespectacled wizard, who's remaining hair was flaming red just like the rest of the Weasleys. They were standing in front of a very crooked house, with many stories, that looked as though it were held up by magic.  
  
Harry inhaled deeply as he walked toward the familiar house; he was going to meet his best friend, Ron, at last.  
  
"Harry, are you alright?" asked Mr. Weasley, looking concerned, the moment that Harry was within earshot.  
  
"Er .. yeah, I'm fine," replied Harry awkwardly.  
  
"Right, we'll leave you here then, Harry," said Tonks cheerfully, and she gave Harry a tiny wave and strode back toward The Knight Bus.  
  
"Constant vigilance, Remember that boy!" growled Moody as he and Kingsley, who waved to Harry as well, followed in Tonks's wake.  
  
"Bye," Harry said, waving back, and he turned back to face Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Lets get inside then, Harry, shall we?" said Mr. Weasley beaming at him, and he led the way into the Burrow.  
  
When Harry entered, however, he found the weasleys awake and waiting for him in the tiny kitchen.  
  
"Oh, Harry, how wonderful to see you dear!" Mrs. Weasley dashed toward him and held him in a very tight hug.  
  
"Dumbledore's just told us what happened, oh I'm so glad you're alright!" said Mrs. Weasley, examining Harry closely as though she was making sure that everything was OK.  
  
"Kingsley was just telling me how superb your Patronus was!" said Mr. Weasley cheerfully, beaming at Harry.  
  
Harry felt everybody staring at him and blushed furiously.  
  
"It .. I was just trying to help," mumbled Harry.  
  
"Oh, come on, Harry!" roared Mr. Weasley, "you don't have to be so modest! Many fully grown wizards and witches could never produce a corporeal Patronus with so many dementors around!"  
  
Harry blushed even worse and looked around furiously.  
  
"Ron, Fred, George, Ginny how are you?" he said, grinning, as his eyes fell upon the four Weasleys, all of whom with flaming red hair.  
  
"We're fine mate!" said Ron, beaming at him, he was wearing a pair of pajamas that did not cover his ankles properly; he was now clearly taller than the Weasley twins who stood on either side of him, and although he looked a bit thinner now, his freckles, and long nose were the same.  
  
"Looks like we've missed the fun, Harry!" said Fred grinning.  
  
"It's not fair! I've always wanted to test my Patronus Charm," said George, a dreamy look on his face. Ginny giggled.  
  
Mrs. Weasley shot the twins a nasty look.  
  
"Well, Harry dear, I believe you must be exhausted after tonight's events, why don't you go and get some sleep?" she said in a motherly fashion.  
  
Harry nodded and strode out of the kitchen, accompanied by Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny.  
  
"Sorry, mate but .. I was not allowed to give away precise information in the letters," muttered Ron, eyeing Harry fretfully, as though he was expecting another tantrum like the one Harry had had at number twelve, Grimmauld Place just after he had arrived at it last summer, "I mean, you've seen for yourself tonight why Dumbledore's been so secretive, haven't you?"  
  
"It's alright, Ron, I don't blame you," said Harry dully.  
  
"So, did you really take on a thousand dementors by yourself?" asked Ginny enthusiastically, as they crossed the narrow passageway, and were now in the process of climbing the uneven staircase.  
  
"Er .. not exactly - " Harry began.  
  
"Well, sorry we won't be able to stay and chat, Harry, but you know!" said Fred yawning widely.  
  
"Work is murder! I think we're going to hire somebody to help us, pity our little bro here refused to take the job!" said George rumpling up Ron's hair. Harry noticed suddenly that the twins were both wearing what looked like brand-new pajamas.  
  
"Get off!" said Ron, withdrawing his head away from George's hand.  
  
"He wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of Mum," said Fred snickering, "ickle Ronnie the prefect, he's made us all proud!"  
  
"Shut up!" said Ron to more snickers from Fred and George.  
  
"Good night!" said the twins in unison, there were two loud cracks, and they were gone.  
  
"They've been a bit annoying, really!" said Ron scowling at the spot where his two brothers had just vanished.  
  
Something suddenly came to Harry's attention.  
  
"So where's Percy?" Harry asked tentatively, "I mean, he's not still convinced Voldemort's not back, is he?"  
  
Ron winced a little, then said rather sadly:  
  
"Well, the Ministry is not exactly friendly with Dumbledore yet, I mean, they can't ignore him anymore, but Dad says Fudge's still afraid that Dumbledore might be planning to be Minister of Magic and kick him out!" he paused for a moment, then continued bitterly, "and Percy's pride won't let him admit his mistake anyway."  
  
They reached the third landing, but Ginny continued to walk alongside Harry.  
  
"Where do you think you're going?" said Ron, staring at Ginny.  
  
"I'm going with you of course, I haven't seen Harry in a long time - " she began.  
  
"Harry needs to rest now, you'll have the whole day to bother him with your pointless babbling tomorrow!" Ron retorted.  
  
Ginny shot him a scathing look and entered her room, slamming the door behind her.  
  
"You shouldn't have been so mean to her," said Harry amazed at Ron's behavior.  
  
"Well, she's being so stupid if you ask me, going out with Dean Thomas and all!" said Ron bitterly.  
  
"What's wrong with Dean Thomas? He's our friend, isn't he?" asked Harry, still more amazed.  
  
"I dunno, he's .." Ron looked as though he was straining his brain to find the proper description, "he's just not OK!" he spat.  
  
Harry did not wish to argue with Ron as he was very tired and wanted to get to Ron's bedroom as quickly as possible so that he could lie down and rest his exhausted body.  
  
Ron's bedroom looked as though Harry had left it only yesterday. Almost everything in it was a violent shade of orange and the wizards and witches of The Chudley Cannons, Ron's favorite Quidditch team, soared on their brooms and waved at Harry and Ron from the posters that covered the walls and the sloping ceiling. Ron's little gray owl, Pigwidgeon, was twittering in its cage.  
  
Harry found that his trunk and Hedwig's cage had already been brought up, he changed into pajamas and slumped onto his mattress. He had barely said good night to Ron before he was fast asleep.  
  
"Harry, Mum's made breakfast, come and get it!" Harry felt somebody prod him the next morning, and, blinking, he opened his bloodshot eyes to see Ron's face just above his.  
  
"It's morning already?" mumbled Harry with a huge yawn. He felt as though he hadn't slept at all.  
  
Ten minutes later, Harry and Ron entered the kitchen, fully dressed, to find a glum-looking Mr. Weasley reading The Daily Prophet, an abandoned piece of buttered toast lay in front of him.  
  
"Just as we've expected, Dumbledore knew it!" groaned Mr. Weasley chucking the paper aside.  
  
Harry's eyes fell upon the first page and his heart gave a horrible jolt. He picked up the newspaper and gaped at the front page. It was covered with black-and-white photos of wizards, some of whom were smirking, others were staring beadily at him in their frames.  
  
Harry recognized many of the faces on the paper in front of him, but the face that caught his attention most, was a pale, pointed one, with cold gray eyes; it was the face of Lucius Malfoy, Draco Malfoy's father, who had been residing in Azkaban, the wizard prison, But, as it seemed now, he wasn't anymore.  
  
Ron leaned in to get a better view of the paper and let out a gasp.   
  
Harry tore his eyes away from Lucius Malfoy's smirking face to the headline over the photos:  
  
MASS BREAKOUT FROM AZKABAN  
  
MINISTRY FEARS YOU-KNOW-WHO IS RESPONSIBLE  
  
The Ministry of Magic announced in the early hours of the morning, today, that there has been another mass breakout from Azkaban.  
  
Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, confirmed to reporters, in his private office at The Ministry of Magic, that twelve high-security prisoners escaped from Azkaban in the earley hours of the morning, today, and that he has informed the Muggle Prime Minister about the highly dangerous nature of the escaped prisoners.  
  
"It is with great regret that I announce that the wizard who calls himself Lord - well, You-Know-Who is believed to be responsible for the breakout, as all the escaped prisoners had been part of a group known as The Death Eaters, which is known to be the group of You-Know-Who's followers." Fudge told the reporters. "We are doing all we can to round up the escaped prisoners, but we beg the wizarding community, however, to remain alert and cautious. The escaped individuals are highly dangerous and on no account should any of them be approached."  
  
Harry put the paper down. His heart was hammering, and his head was throbbing so hard that it felt as though it was going to burst open.  
  
"What do you mean Dumbledore knew it?" breathed Harry, looking intently at Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Didn't he tell you, Harry?" said Mr. Weasley gloomily.  
  
"Tell me what?" Harry replied, looking completely perplexed.  
  
Mr. Weasley stood up, fidgeting with his fingers, and began to pace the kitchen.  
  
"Let's say Dumbledore has been keeping an eye on Azkaban in order not to give You-Know-Who the chance to do what he's just done," he said darkly.  
  
Something suddenly seemed to dawn on Harry; he remembered what Dumbledore had told him when Harry had asked him how he knew that Voldemort was pleased. "Because that's why he has set those dementors on you, Harry," that's what Dumbledore had told him then.  
  
"So Voldemort set those dementors on me so that he could help his Death Eaters escape, while Dumbledore was busy saving me?" said Harry slowly.  
  
Mr. Weasley nodded.  
  
"So the whole dementor thing was a .. a diversion?" asked Harry, feeling the blood rush into his face.  
  
Mr. Weasley nodded again.  
  
At that precise moment there were two loud cracks, and the Weasley twins appeared in the middle of the kitchen grinning.  
  
"Why's everybody grumpy? Did we miss something?" said George, the grin fading slightly from his face.  
  
"We didn't do it!" said Fred quickly.  
  
"Lucius Malfoy and some other filthy Death Eaters broke out of Azkaban!" said Ron looking appalled, and handing Fred the newspaper.  
  
The smile had now faded completely from the twins' faces; they were both staring sulkily at the people in the photos.  
  
"Well, with a great prat like Fudge as Minister of Magic, you'll have to expect more than that!" said George finally, munching at a buttered piece of toast.  
  
"Proved himself to be even thicker than Percy," said Fred, also stuffing a large piece of toast into his mouth, as every face in the kitchen turned toward the twins.  
  
"Blimey, Look at the time!" gasped George consulting his wristwatch, "We'd better run, or we'll be late for work!"  
  
Fred and George waved at the staring faces in the kitchen, and with two other loud cracks they were gone.  
  
"How can they be so calm?" asked Ron, looking amazed.  
  
Harry spent the next day thinking gloomily about the escaped Death Eaters, and what Malfoy was going to say to him the moment he had seen his face, but Ron managed to get him out of that in the next few days by inviting him to such tempting activities, like playing Wizard Chess, de-gnoming the garden with him, and playing Quidditch with Fred, George, Ginny, and him in the orchard.  
  
Harry was amazed at the huge improvement in Ron's Quidditch performance that he seemed to have obtained since the last time Harry had seen him at it. Perhaps it was the fact that there were no spectators in the orchard that were singing loudly: "WEASLEY IS OUR KING!" or maybe it was just the fact that Ron had Helped Gryffindor win the Ouidditch cup a few months earlier that was boosting his spirits, thus enabling him to block the great majority of the shots that had been sent his way.  
  
Ginny, however, was showing a very high standard as Chaser that was much better than her standard as Seeker, the thing that made Harry have a strong feeling that she could make it through the Ouidditch tryouts and make a superb Chaser replacing Angelina Johnson, the great Gryffindor Chaser whom Harry had heard from Fred and George that she was now a graduate.  
  
Harry and Ron were cheering enthusiastically, watching Ron's bishop throttling Harry's pawn, when a handsome tawny owl swooped through the bedroom's open window and landed on the chessboard between them, causing the pieces to run away frantically. There were two letters in its beak.  
  
"It's our Hogwarts letters," said Harry, checking the two letters that bore the Hogwarts crest on them.  
  
Harry handed Ron his letter and began ripping open his own, as the owl fluttered away through the open window.  
  
Harry scanned his letter:  
  
Dear Mr. Potter,  
  
Please note that the new school year will begin on September the first. The Hogwarts Express will leave from King's Cross station, platform nine and three-quarters, at eleven o'clock.  
  
We would also like to inform you that, considering your performance during your matches with the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, you have been appointed Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.  
  
A list of books for next year is enclosed.  
  
Yours sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagall  
  
Deputy Headmistress  
  
Harry put down his letter looking shocked. Although he knew he was very good at flying and catching the tiny Golden Snitch, he had never considered actually being Quidditch Captain.  
  
Ron was observing him closely, looking slightly puzzled.  
  
"What's the matter, mate?" he asked tentatively.  
  
Without saying a word, Harry handed him his letter.  
  
Ron scanned the letter hurriedly, and his eyes widened, he let out a gasp and uttered a single word:  
  
"Blimey!" 


	4. NUMBER NINETYTHREE, DIAGON ALLEY

CHAPTER FOUR  
  
NUMBER NINETY-THREE, DIAGON ALLEY  
  
"Congratulations Harry!" said Fred merrily ruffling up Harry's hair, making it even messier than it had been.  
  
"You wouldn't stand a chance if we were still on the team though!" said George chuckling.  
  
It was another glorious Sunday with clear sapphire sky, and Harry was sitting on the lawn in the Weasleys' yard, surrounded by Ron, Fred, George, Ginny, and Bill; Ron's elder brother, who worked for Gringotts, the wizarding bank, and was at the same time a member of the Order of the Phoenix. Bill lived in London after he had returned to England from Egypt the very last summer to help the Order, and from what Harry had seen, he was a rather busy member of the Order as this was the first time Harry had seen him since his arrival at the Burrow.  
  
"Don't listen to those two, Harry, you're the best player Gryffindor have ever had!" said Bill patting Harry on the back. His appearance didn't seem to have changed much; his long hair was tied back in a ponytail, and he wore an earring with a fang dangling from it, and clothes that were fit for a rock concert.  
  
"So you're going to pick me as a Chaser, right Harry?" asked Ginny eagerly.  
  
"That would be decided after I've seen your tryout," said Harry, snickering.  
  
"Starting to feel conceited, are we?" said Ginny, giggling.  
  
"So, when are you going to buy your new school books, Harry?" asked Fred, grinning at Harry.  
  
Harry sighed and frowned a little.  
  
"I was thinking tomorrow, your Mum and Dad didn't seem quite keen on it though," he said dully.  
  
"It's not that dangerous though," said Ron briskly, "I mean, it'll be broad daylight, and members of the Order will be coming with you, besides, You-Know-Who's done what he's been up to, hasn't he?"  
  
Harry had a fleeting image of Hermione, staring at him sternly; what would Hermione say if she were with them now? Surely she would try to avert him from going to Diagon Alley and, in her opinion, risking his life! Harry suppressed a snicker at that thought.  
  
"If you get to Diagon Alley, drop in at number ninety-three, will you, Harry?" said Fred still grinning.  
  
"We've hired our first employee ever," said George smirking, "and we'd like you to meet him."  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
Harry had barely finished breakfast next day, when three loud cracks announced the arrival of Tonks, Moody, and Lupin at the Weaslys' tiny kitchen.  
  
"Good morning!" said Tonks brightly, Her spiky hair was bubble-gum-pink - which Harry thought was probably today's color as she could change her appearance at will, being a Metamorphmagus - and she was wearing her purple T-shirt that bore THE WEIRD SISTERS legend.  
  
"Good morning!" replied Harry grinning.  
  
"How was your summer?" asked Lupin beaming at him, his face was pale, his hair was graying, and he was wearing battered jumper and trousers.  
  
"Er .. fine," lied Harry.  
  
"I've heard you've done a nice Patronus Charm back in Hogsmeade, Harry, you've really made me proud," said Lupin, patting Harry on the back.  
  
"Thanks," replied Harry awkwardly.  
  
Mad-Eye Moody was holding a staff, and wearing his voluminous traveling cloak and his bowler hat that covered his magical eye, but still, Harry had an unpleasant feeling that it was resting upon him under that hat.  
  
"Let's go then, shall we?" growled Moody.  
  
After listening to Mrs. Weasley's last-minute word, in which she tried to persuade him to stay at the Burrow while she got his things for him from Diagon Alley, and which he rejected kindly, Harry set off into bright sunlight, accompanied by Mrs. Weasley, Ron, Ginny, Tonks, Moody, and Lupin.  
  
They took an Underground train, and their journey was eventless this time. Soon, Harry found himself at the entrance of the familiar grubby-looking pub, The Leaky Cauldron. He entered Diagon Alley through the archway in the courtyard's wall with Mrs. Weasley, Ron, and Ginny, leaving Tonks, Moody, and Lupin at the crowded bar.  
  
They dropped in at Gringotts, the wizarding bank, and Harry withdrew some gold Galleons from his vault (which, to him, was the most embarrassing procedure as he didn't want Ron to see the mountain of gold that lay in his vault, when there was only a little pile of silver Sickles in the Weasleys' vault), and they were at Flourish and Blotts when Harry spotted a tangle of brown bushy hair behind a huge stack of heavy books that were moving toward the exit.  
  
"Hermione?" said Harry uncertainly.  
  
A pair of eyes appeared from behind the stack of books and widened promptly. There was a loud scream, and the stack of books fell to the ground with a loud thud, causing many faces in the crowded bookshop to turn sharply toward the source of the racket.  
  
"HARRY! At last!" squeaked Hermione, hugging Harry so tightly that he was actually knocked backwards.  
  
"How are you? Oh, I've been so worried! Oh, those dementors!" she was observing him through watery eyes.  
  
"It's OK, I'm fine Hermione, get a grip!" said Harry, struggling to get away from her.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley, Ron, Ginny, how are you?" said Hermione, finally noticing the three Weasleys.  
  
"We're fine dear," said Mrs. Weasley, beaming at her in a motherly fashion.  
  
Mr. And Mrs. Granger, who had been at the back of the bookshop, jostled their way through the crowd toward the spot where their daughter's scream had come from.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley," said Mr.Granger, beaming and shaking Mrs. Weasley's hand, "it's nice to see you again."  
  
"So, how did you know about the dementors thing?" asked Harry conversationally, as Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and himself strode out of Flourish and Blotts, their hands free, while Mrs. Weasley strode toward the Leaky Cauldron, chatting merrily to Mr. And Mrs. Granger who were walking alongside her, a huge stack of books hovering ahead of the three of them conducted by Mrs. Weasley's wand. Harry, Ron, and Ginny had actually managed to convince her to meet them in the pub half an hour later.   
  
"The Daily Prophet," replied Hermione simply.  
  
"Odd," said Harry slightly puzzled, "I've been reading the Prophet, but I don't recall seeing any article about what happened in Hogsmeade!"  
  
"That's because it wasn't exactly an article, Harry." Said Hermione sarcastically, "there were barely two lines on one of the last pages."  
  
"It's that git, Fudge, he's trying to hush it all up!" said Ron indignantly.  
  
"If only Dad were Minister of Magic!" said Ginny eagerly.  
  
"Hello Harry," said a voice cheerfully from behind them, and the four of them spun around simultaneously to see a little boy with tidy dirty-blond hair and emerald-green eyes beaming at them. He was holding many bags with one hand, and a cage that contained a handsome tawny owl that was snoozing in it, with the other.  
  
"Hello, Mark, it's good to see you again!" said Harry, a wide smile suddenly spreading through his face.  
  
"Oh, sorry," said Harry noticing the puzzled looks on his friends' faces, "this is Mark Evans, my cousin," he continued, gesturing toward the little boy, "Ron, Ginny, and Hermione, my best friends," he said, indicating each one of them in turn.  
  
There was a moment of stunned silence, in which Ron, Ginny, and Hermione looked from Harry to Mark, evidently confused.  
  
"I thought your cousin was a bit larger," said Ron, perplexed.  
  
Both Harry and Mark laughed for a few moments, ignoring the fact that the other three were now looking at each other, utterly bewildered.  
  
"You mean Dudley?" said Harry, still chuckling, "no, Mark's my other cousin, I'll explain later."  
  
He turned to face Mark.  
  
"Why don't you come with us? We're going to see friends of ours, they own a joke shop!" said Harry eagerly, but Mark shook his head.  
  
"Sorry, Harry, I can't, my gran's waiting for me," he indicated an old witch with good-natured face, who was standing outside an Apothecary, examining closely what looked like bright yellow powder.  
  
"Well, see you at school, then, Harry," he said cheerfully.  
  
"OK," said Harry gloomily.  
  
"Nice meeting you! Bye," said Mark brightly, waving at them, and striding away toward his grandmother.  
  
Harry spent the next five minutes explaining about his newly found cousin to Ron, Ginny, and Hermione.  
  
"You mean the muggles knew all along, and they never told you!" said Ron, looking utterly amazed.  
  
"Well, you know my aunt and uncle," said Harry bitterly, "If Dumbledore didn't make them take me in as a child, I wouldn't even know that I have an aunt and an uncle."  
  
They came to a halt at a very crowded area; people seemed to be jostling outside some store, trying to get inside it, a scene that reminded Harry forcibly of the day that Gilderoy Lockhart, their former Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, had come to sign his books at Flourish and Blotts, four years earlier.  
  
"What's this all about?" asked Harry, staring at the crowd, "You don't reckon Lockhart's out of St. Mungo's, do you?" he finished, looking nervously from Ron to Ginny to Hermione. Ron and Ginny both laughed.  
  
"I don't think so, Harry," said Ginny, still giggling, "this is number ninety-three," she indicated a huge sign that was hanging over the store door.  
  
Harry stared at it and saw that there were huge letters of various bright colors that were dancing merrily on it, forming the words:  
  
WEASLEYS' WIZARDING WHEEZES  
  
Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione jostled their way into the store, and instead of hearing a bell of some kind announcing their presence as they stepped inside, the Weasley twins' voices chorused from somewhere above them: "WELCOME, MARAUDER!"  
  
It was very crowded inside; young Witches and wizards, who all seemed to be Hogwarts students, were examining excitedly the stacks of Skiving Snackboxes, Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-Bangs boxes, the jars of Ton-Tongue Toffee, and many other products that Harry could not recognize.  
  
They could hear Fred and George's voices over the excited chattering of the students, they jostled their way toward the place that the voice was coming from, and when they had finally emerged out of the sea of students, they found themselves standing at a long counter, and behind it, busy demonstrating the qualities of the merchandise to astonished-looking customers, were Fred, George, and - to Harry's amazement - Lee Jordan.  
  
"Harry! So nice to see you at our humble joke shop," said Fred grinning, at the sight of Harry.  
  
"You wouldn't be stopping me from selling this Skiving Snackbox, now, would you, Hermione?" said George, smirking, and handing the Snackbox to a grinning, sinister-looking blond boy, who shoved some gold into George's hand in return.  
  
Hermione flushed furiously.  
  
"Look who's here! The new Gryffindor Captain, and the promising Keeper, and Seeker, along with our law-abiding Prefect!" said Lee brightly, beaming at them.  
  
Hermione flushed even worse.  
  
"Well, I think I'm going to try out for Chaser," said Ginny earnestly.  
  
"So, you're the new Employee?" said Harry, looking intently at Lee.  
  
Lee gave a tiny chuckle, then, grinning, he said:  
  
"Well, I don't think I've got too many choices, not with my four N.E.W.T.s."  
  
"Well, if you ask me, I'm surprised our little bro here's managed to scrape eight O.W.L.s, including an Outstanding!" said Fred, shaking his head sadly, as he handed a vividly colored box, which bore the words PORTABLE SWAMP, to an excited-looking little boy, "oh, the shame of it!"  
  
Ron blushed badly as Harry and Hermione both turned simultaneously to stare at him.  
  
Harry was suddenly aware that he had not asked Ron about his O.W.L.s results, and it seemed from Hermione's reaction that what she had just heard was news to her too.  
  
"What was the O.W.L you've got an O in, Ron?" Harry asked eagerly.  
  
"Defense Against the Dark Arts," muttered Ron, "I've got three E's in Transfiguration, Care of Magical Creatures, and Potions, a P in Divination, and A's in the rest." He finished before anyone could ask him another question.  
  
There was a moment of stunned silence, in which Ron stared at the floor while his ears seemed to grow even redder.  
  
"Well that's good, isn't it?" Hermione spoke finally, "I mean - an O in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and an E in Potions - and the Potions O.W.L exam wasn't that easy if you ask me!"  
  
Both Harry and Ron were staring awestruck at Hermione now.  
  
"Hermione, are you feeling well?" asked Ron, eyeing her incredulously.  
  
"Oh, come off it!" she said impatiently.  
  
George, who had disappeared for a few minutes, emerged from a door behind the counter carrying a large, heavy-looking box.  
  
"Here you go, Harry," he said, putting the box on the counter under Harry's nose, "a sample of our merchandise - free of charge," he finished, grinning.  
  
"I - you don't have to - " Harry mumbled awkwardly, staring at the box.  
  
"It's nothing .. without you, we would never have been able to open this joke shop, mate, besides, it's good publicity in Hogwarts for our shop after all!" said George, grinning broadly, and winking at him.  
  
"Thanks," said Harry, grinning back.  
  
"So - haven't you two considered - er - going back to Hogwarts?" said Hermione tentatively, looking nervously from Fred to George.  
  
Fred, George, and Lee all laughed.  
  
Hermione blushed a little, but continued firmly.  
  
"You ought to consider it, now that Umbridge's gone - the joke shop can wait another year, you know - Lee can take care of it while you're - "  
  
"Hermione!" said Fred, still chuckling, "You sound just like Mum - you should've been her daughter!"  
  
Harry suppressed a giggle.  
  
Hermione blushed worse, but did not utter a word.  
  
"I hate to admit it," said Ginny earnestly, staring thoughtfully at the twins, "but I think the Gryffindor Quidditch team will never have Beaters as well qualified as you two are!"  
  
"Well, that's our sister!" said George, grinning broadly, and patting Ginny on the head, "but there won't be any discounts here, today, though - business is business!" he continued, chuckling.  
  
"Looks like they're doing really good," said Harry ten minutes later, he was carrying the heavy box that George had given him, and walking up Diagon Alley with Ron, Ginny, and Hermione alongside him, "I've got a feeling we're going to miss them on the Quidditch field, though!"  
  
"I reckon Filch's the one who's going to miss them most!" Ron snickered.  
  
Everybody laughed.  
  
"You're late!" said Mrs. Weasley the moment they entered the pub again, "it's been forty minutes now!"  
  
"Mum! It's not like Death Eaters are going to Attack us at any moment - " Ron began, but at that precise moment, there was a loud explosion sound somewhere in the street outside the pub, closely followed by a loud racket, and screams of terrified people.  
  
Lupin, Moody, and Tonks, who were sitting at a table not far from where Mrs. Weasley was standing, leapt to their feet promptly, whipping out their wands. Mrs. Weasley, who was very white now, followed suit.  
  
Ron, however, looked very appalled now; he was staring transfixed at the pub door with his mouth half open.  
  
The pub was suddenly very quiet, everyone was now gazing horror-struck at the pub door, behind which the loud noises and horrified screams were becoming more pronounced by the moment, some wizards and witches had already pulled out their wands.  
  
Mr. Granger Was standing with his arm around Mrs. Granger's shoulder, they were both standing very close to each other in a corner, looking extremely terrified.  
  
Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione, who were now recovering slightly from the shock, all pulled out their wands and held them in front of them.  
  
"Stay where you are!" whispered Lupin fiercely, shooting them a fleeting glance, as he picked up an empty bottle from the table in front of him.  
  
"Portus," he muttered, pointing his wand at the bottle, which glowed blue, and trembled in his hand for a few moments, then became still again.  
  
"Molly, kindly, escort the Grangers and the rest to the Burrow," he whispered again, as he lowered the bottle to the floor and gave it a tiny push, making it roll across the pub floor toward the place where Harry and his friends were standing with their wands still at the ready.  
  
But as the bottle was exactly midway between Lupin and Harry, there was a deafening blast, and the pub door, and front wall were blown so forcibly, sending bricks, chunks of wood, and dust in all directions, and causing the bottle to roll away madly. There were several screams in the pub; Hermione actually gave a feeble whimper.  
  
"DUCK!" bellowed Lupin, dropping rapidly onto the rubble-strewn floor, with his wand held at the ready in front of him, like a policeman taking cover.  
  
Harry did not need to hear that echoing yell to duck, as he was already flat on his stomach, on the floor, and so were the Weasleys, and the Grangers.  
  
Harry was lying behind the large box that George had given him, and as he took off his glasses to wipe them clean of the dust that now covered them obscuring his vision, he felt a couple of jets of green light streak over his head.  
  
"Well, well, if it isn't the famous Harry Potter!" he heard a harsh, horribly familiar female voice speak from somewhere near the ruined wall.  
  
Harry's insides plummeted horribly, his heart was hammering madly. He put his glasses frantically back on, and, coughing and blinking madly in the dusty air, he looked up toward the place that the voice was coming from. 


	5. CORNELIUS'S CRISIS

CHAPTER FIVE  
  
CORNELIUS'S CRISIS  
  
The scene that Harry saw before his own eyes, came as a shocking surprise.  
  
The front wall of The Leaky Cauldron had vanished completely, making the street beyond it clearly visible, and standing where the solid wall had been seconds earlier, were many black hooded figures with slits in their hoods for the eyes, each holding out their wand at the ready, and the hooded person that stood in front of them all was unmistakably a woman, whom Harry had a horrible sickening feeling that he knew perfectly well who she was.  
  
There were more hooded figures visible in the streets, some of which were holding their wands up while screaming terrified muggles hovered upside down above them. Harry discovered immediately where the explosion sound had come from, as he saw a burning car that was sending dense black clouds of smoke into the air, lying upside down on the street behind the many Death Eaters that stood in the huge hole that had once been The Leaky Cauldron's wall, but the thing that terrified him most was the scene of at least three pairs of gigantic bare feet that were stomping alongside the Death Eaters in the streets, and which Harry recognized immediately as Giants' feet, having seen before, Hagrid's Giant brother, Grawp.  
  
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" yelled Bellatrix Lestrange's ruthless voice.  
  
"Locomotor Table!" Lupin yelled almost at the same moment, and the table that Moody, Tonks, and himself were taking cover behind, soared into the air and placed itself in the way of the green jet of light that had issued from Bellatrix's wand tip and was streaking toward Harry. The jet hit the table and it exploded immediately into a hundred pieces sending chunks of wood in every direction.  
  
It was like the sign everyone was waiting for; Lupin, Moody and Tonks leapt to their feet and started sending different curses at the Death Eaters, several other witches and wizards started dueling with Death Eaters as well.  
  
A hooded wizard in brown cloak was fighting quite fiercely; he was able to stun three Death Eaters almost immediately.  
  
Harry was gazing up at the battling group. Members of the Order and the other few witches and wizards who were supporting them, were outnumbered Three to one by Death Eaters. His brain was working frantically, should he help them? But what if his interference made things worse like what had happened in the Department of Mysteries? Would he stand to risk another loss of somebody he loved?  
  
But before he could answer any of these questions, he found himself leaping hastily to his feet and aiming his wand at a Death Eater, who was standing right behind Lupin's back with his wand aimed at his head.  
  
"Stupefy!" Harry yelled, and a jet of red light streaked out of the tip of his wand, hitting the Death Eater squarely on the back, and causing him to stagger dangerously sideways for a few moments, before hitting the Floor.  
  
Harry's action seemed to provide motive for the others; he soon heard Ron, Ginny, and Hermione, all yelling different curses.  
  
"NO!" cried Lupin alarmingly, as he dueled with a particularly vicious Death Eater, "GET TO THE PORTKEY! GET BACK TO THE BURROW!"  
  
"But you're - " Harry began.  
  
"WE'LL BE FINE - JUST LEAVE!"  
  
Harry could hear occasional cracks around the pub as witches and wizards who were not part of the action, and were taking cover under tables, behind chairs, or behind the bar, disapparated.  
  
Wishing that Lupin and the other members of the Order would disapparate immediately after making sure that he and the others were safe, Harry scanned the pub frantically for the empty bottle.  
  
He spotted it right behind the wooden leg of Moody, who was busy dueling with two Death Eaters at once, evidently not taking the slightest note that he was about to smash, at any moment, the Portkey that was the last hope for Harry and the others to get back unharmed to the Burrow.  
  
"THERE!" Harry indicated the bottle to Hermione and Ginny, who were nearest him, "TELL THE OTHERS - PROTEGO!" He yelled causing a stray jet of red light to bounce off him.  
  
After making sure that Hermione and Ginny had conveyed the message to the others, he sprinted feverishly toward the bottle, but before he could reach it, a black shape appeared out of thin air in front of him, causing his stomach to plummet sharply. He skidded to a halt so abruptly that he almost lost his balance. It was standing only feet away from him.  
  
"Going somewhere, Potter?" said Bellatrix Lestrange's harsh voice from beneath her hood, as she pointed her wand between Harry's eyes.  
  
Harry stood there for a moment, with his wand pointed at Bellatrix's heart. His mind was racing, his heart was hammering somewhere behind his Adam's apple. He felt a surge of mingled hatred and fury flow forcibly through his veins like venom, poisoning his mind, rousing vengeance inside him…he wished he knew how to perform the Unforgivable Curses properly so that he could cause Bellatrix as much pain as possible…though he doubted he would be faster with his wand than she was with hers.  
  
"Stu - " but before Harry could even complete the word, Bellatrix had acted.  
  
"Expelliarmus!" She yelled, and Harry's wand flew immediately out of his hand, leaving him totally unarmed in front of Bellatrix's murderous wand.  
  
"The Dark Lord will be thrilled," said Bellatrix triumphantly, her eyes glinted behind her mask.  
  
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" she cried.  
  
But just then, the large box that George had given to Harry back at the joke shop, appeared out of thin air, placing itself between Harry and Bellatrix.  
  
The jet of green light that had issued from the tip of Bellatrix's wand, collided with the box, which was blasted immediately into a hundred pieces.  
  
Muddy water burst instantly like fountains out of the blasted box, turning the pub into a swamp, as magical fireworks exploded noisily in every direction at the same moment.  
  
Pink Catherine wheels whizzed dangerously through the air. Dragons that were made of green-and-gold sparks soared in the air emitting fiery blasts and loud bangs as they went. Rockets with tails of brilliant silver stars ricochetted off what remained of the pub walls. Firecrackers exploded loudly. Sparklers wrote swearwords in midair.  
  
Bellatrix and Harry both staggered hastily backward to avoid being hit by any of the rampaging fireworks.  
  
The fight seemed to halt for a moment as everybody waded heavily through the newly formed swamp while their eyes followed the progress of the many whizzing and banging magical fireworks that almost blocked vision in the pub.  
  
Harry, who was now spattered from head to foot with mud, felt someone grasp his forearm firmly and drag him forcefully backward. He turned sharply to see who it was and saw, for his surprise, a familiar face that he had seen only once before.  
  
It was the black wizard he had seen back in Hogsmeade, the one who had fought off dementors rather fiercely and had saved Harry's life with his patronus. He was wearing a brown cloak with a hood that had obviously slid back while he was busy dueling with Death Eaters.  
  
"Quick, Harry, touch the Portkey!" croaked the wizard indicating the empty bottle that was floating nearby on the muddy water. The Weasleys and the Grangers were already huddled around it, watching Harry apprehensively.  
  
"But, my wand - " Harry began, ducking a speeding rocket.  
  
"I've got it!" Hermione held up his wand.  
  
"YOU IDIOTS - GET POTTER!" Harry heard Bellatrix shriek somewhere to his left.  
  
He waded hurriedly across to the empty bottle.  
  
"OK, NOW!" Hermione yelled, and everybody touched the bottle simultaneously.  
  
"One…two…" muttered hermione in a shaking voice.  
  
"There he is! AVADA - " came Bellatrix's voice from somewhere behind him, exactly at the same moment that Hermione said, "three…"  
  
Bellatrix's voice was suddenly cut off as Harry felt the familiar sensation of a hook being jerked behind his navel, his feet left the ground, and he was speeding forward in a whirlwind of color and sound, banging into Ron and Hermione who were on either side of him, while his finger felt as if it was glued to the empty bottle.  
  
And then, his feet hit solid ground again, so forcibly that he staggered sideways a little bit, but stayed on his feet all the same.  
  
They were in the Weasleys' tiny kitchen again; Ron and Ginny collapsed onto the ground, as Hermione launched herself at her father and mother, who were both on the ground looking windswept and utterly appalled, and held them both in a very tight watery hug, while Mrs. Weasley's eyes darted from one to another, as though making sure they were all there.  
  
"Can I have my wand back, Hermione?" croaked Harry the moment that he could find his voice again. His mouth felt very dry.  
  
"Oh - sorry - of course - " squeaked Hermione, wiping her eyes on her sleeve, and sniffling loudly, as she tossed Harry's wand back to him.  
  
Several silent but nervous minutes passed, in which Ron, Ginny, and the Grangers sat mutely at the table, and Harry paced the kitchen restlessly, while Mrs. Weasley made a pot of tea, and was in the process of pouring tea into Mr. Granger's cup when it happened.  
  
A series of loud cracks, echoed around the silent kitchen, causing everybody, especially the Grangers, to jump badly - Harry actually pulled out his wand. Next moment, Mr. Weasley, Lupin, Fred, and George, were all standing in the tiny kitchen with them.  
  
Lupin was carrying a stack of muddy books.  
  
"You forgot those, Molly," he said in a casual voice, placing the stack on the table.  
  
There was a silent moment, in witch almost everybody in the kitchen gaped at Lupin.  
  
"Did you - I mean, have the Death Eaters been captured?" asked Harry hopefully.  
  
"I'm afraid not, Harry," said Lupin calmly, looking into Harry's eyes, "they've fled just before the Ministry Wizards have arrived."  
  
Harry felt a bit crestfallen, though he knew perfectly well that a huge group of Death Eaters like that would not be captured so easily, especially if they had Bellatrix Lestrange as leader.  
  
"But what was the point of all that?" asked Harry, his temper rising, "did they do all that to - to kill me?"  
  
"No, Harry," said Lupin, frowning, "I'm afraid that was an unexpected bonus."  
  
Harry raised his eyebrows.  
  
"You see, Harry, the Death Eaters don't need a reason to attack muggles, they do it for fun," said Lupin thoughtfully, "however, knowing that Hogwarts students received their letters a few days ago, I'm guessing they decided to attack The Leaky Cauldron, in case they found you there, Harry."  
  
Something suddenly came to Harry's attention.  
  
"Where's Tonks and Moody?" asked Harry nervously.  
  
"Nymphadora's been injured, Harry…she's been taken to St. Mungo's by Mad-Eye Moody" Mr. Weasley, who was looking quite gloomy, spoke for the first time, "nothing serious - she'll be out in a few days, most likely," he added hastily, seeing the horrified look in Harry's eyes.  
  
"But - but if they attacked The Leaky Cauldron…why wouldn't they attack us here?" Harry said slowly, as the thought dawned on him.  
  
"I can't stay here - " Harry began nervously, but he was cut off promptly by Lupin.  
  
"Relax, Harry, Dumbledore had taken care of that," Lupin spoke calmly, "Haven't you wondered why we brought you here instead of number twelve. Grimmauld Place?"  
  
Harry gazed, with his mouth half open, at Lupin, but did not utter a word.  
  
"Number twelve. Grimmauld Place does no longer serve as Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix," said Mr. Weasley, and Harry turned to face him, "it's too risky with Kreacher answering to Narcissa"  
  
"But, if I stayed in this place, I'd endanger - " Harry began, but Lupin cut him off again.  
  
"Let's say Dumbledore had taken the necessary precautions to make this place immune to possible Death Eaters' attacks." He said, as Harry turned back to face him.  
  
"Looks like we've missed the fun again!" Fred spoke for the first time, smirking, as every face in the kitchen turned toward the twins.  
  
"Glad our little present came in handy, though," said George, grinning at Harry.  
  
Harry couldn't help smiling at these words.  
  
"Thanks, it really was a lifesaver," he said, grinning broadly.  
  
"That bloke in the brown cloak was really good, though! He sent the box between you and that mad woman, Harry," said Ron enthusiastically, looking suddenly excited.  
  
"He's saved my life before - that day in Hogsmeade!" said Harry, puzzled, remembering suddenly the mysterious tall black man.  
  
Harry hadn't thought about that man before, not until this moment. He had thought that the man was a stranger who had found himself in the middle of a group of a thousand dementors, and so, had been forced to fight for his life. But now, however, he couldn't ignore anymore the fact that this man's showing up every time Harry was in serious danger, was an unlikely coincidence.  
  
"I saw him," Lupin said thoughtfully, interrupting Harry's train of thought, "He was fighting quite fiercely, like an Auror - I know most of the Ministry Aurors and I don't think he's one of them though - "  
  
He turned to face Harry, a concerned look on his face.  
  
"I must ask you, Harry, not to trust him simply because he looks friendly," he said earnestly.  
  
Harry raised his eyebrows; though Lupin's words made perfect sense, as Harry had learned to his cost, he didn't want to believe that the man who had saved his life twice was untrustworthy.  
  
"Well," said Mr. Granger shakily, and everybody turned to face him, "I'm afraid we'll have to leave now."  
  
"Mum, please, can Hermione stay?" said Ginny hopefully.  
  
"I think Hermione would rather be with her parents right now, dear" said Mrs. Weasley, reading the expression on Hermione's face.  
  
"But before you go, there's one thing - " Mrs. Weasley pulled out her wand. Mr. And Mrs. Granger flinched.  
  
"Oh, don't worry, I'm only going to clean you up - don't suppose you'd rather be walking in the streets like this!" said Mrs. Weasley, smiling, and pointing her wand at the Grangers.  
  
"Scourgify!" she muttered, and the mud that covered the three Grangers vanished at once.  
  
Harry, Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George, all left the kitchen after being cleaned up in turn by Mrs. Weasley, while Lupin and Mr. Weasley escorted the Grangers to the Underground station.  
  
"You know, Harry, when Dad arrived at our joke shop and told us what's just happened, we couldn't believe what we've heard!" said George cheerfully, as they walked up the narrow passageway toward the stairs.  
  
"Yeah, and when we got to The Leaky Cauldron, the wall was back in place, but nobody seemed to have found out how to subdue our merchandise!" snickered Fred.  
  
"But we've been kind enough to clean everything up for them, and for free!" said George, smirking.  
  
"But how did your Dad know in the first place?" asked Harry.  
  
"The whole Ministry knows!" said George, looking amazed at Harry's question.  
  
"And the Daily Prophet knows too," added Fred in the same amazement.  
  
"Many wizards and witches have escaped from the pub while the battle's been on - " said George.  
  
"And some of them have gone straight to the Ministry to report what they've witnessed - " said Fred.  
  
"But others - as it seems - have gone to the Prophet instead - " said George.  
  
"Dad says some reporters have arrived even before Aurors and Obliviators have - " said Fred.  
  
"Which means this is not going to be good for old Fudge," said George, smirking.  
  
Harry, Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George, spent the rest of the day up in Ron's room, debating about the events of the day. Fred and George actually took the rest of the day off, as the Ministry had given orders to every store in Diagon Alley to close for the rest of the day as an extra precaution.  
  
"It's useless, I tell you!" said Fred, shaking his head, "that git, Fudge, thinks he'd cover up for being so stupid and letting the Death Eaters attack The Leaky Cauldron so easily, by evacuating Diagon Alley!"  
  
"Dad says he won't last more than a month - " sneered George.  
  
"You mean there's going to be a new Minister of Magic?" asked Harry, raising his eyebrows; although Fudge had been acting very stupidly since the return of Lord Voldemort, Harry had never considered that he might be sacked, though, come to think of it, that was the only thing Fudge had been dreading since the day that Harry had emerged from that maze in his fourth year, telling everyone that he had witnessed the rebirth of Lord Voldemort.  
  
"Of course!" said George in amazement, goggling at Harry, "You don't suppose after everything that had happened he's still going to be Minister, do you? The git not only had let those Death Eaters escape, but he let them attack muggles in broad daylight and failed to lay a finger on them as well!"  
  
Incomplete chapter - To be continued.... 


End file.
